Psychedelic cells are fruit of Alan Turing's equations

WE ALL know the world can look weird and wonderful under the microscope, but who knew cells could look this pretty? Actually, you won’t find these psychedelic blobs in any living creature on Earth, because contrary to appearances this image has been created by a computer.

Generative artist Jonathan McCabe works with algorithms first developed by mathematician Alan Turing to create pictures like this. “I don’t guide the production of any particular image, the program runs from start to finish without input,” McCabe says, though he does tweak the software to produce different results. “The trick is to try to make a system that generates interesting output by itself.”

Turing is most famous for his pioneering work in computing, but he was also interested in how living creatures produce biological patterns such as a tiger’s stripes. He came up with a system of equations that describe how two chemicals react together, resulting in surprisingly lifelike arrangements.

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McCabe developed his algorithm based on Turing’s ideas. His program treats colours as different liquids that can’t mix together because of an artificial surface tension, which is what gives them a cell-like appearance. “You get structures which look like cell membranes and mitochondria because at the microscopic scale surface tension forces are strong,” says McCabe.